Real Madrid´s Cristiano Ronaldo may land 12-match ban after referee shove

Cristiano Ronaldo is facing up to the possibility of a 12-match ban after his shove on referee Ricardo de Burgos Bengoetxea during Real Madrid’s 3-1 Supercopa de Espana win over Barcelona.

The Portugal star endured a dramatic outing at Camp Nou on Sunday, coming off the bench to score before getting booked for removing his shirt in celebration.

He took a tumble in the box soon after and earned a second yellow card for an apparent dive, but Ronaldo allowed his anger to get the better of him as he pushed the official, who then included the incident in his match report.

“Player: Cristiano Ronaldo Dos Santos Aveiro. Once the red card was shown, the player pushed me slightly in a sign of disagreement,” wrote the referee.

That leaves Ronaldo open to sanction under Article 96 of the Royal Spanish Football Federation’s (RFEF) laws, which recommends a suspension of 4-12 matches for players found to “grab, push or shake” an official in a manner that is “slightly violent”.

The 32-year-old is already due to serve a one-game ban following his dismissal. If the RFEF’s competition committee applies a suspension of five games or more it will apply to all domestic matches. If the ban is four games or fewer, it will apply solely to the Super Cup.

Madrid host Barca in the second leg on Wednesday and begin their LaLiga title defence at Deportivo La Coruna on Saturday.